9.28.2011

The ends of my bumpy, smooshy, masculine scarf need woven after binding off last night. Knitting with Cascade 128 Superwash was a total pleasure and my stash my be seeing a little more of that baby.

I'm also plotting what to do with the two skeins of Misti Alpaca Chunky I've got with me. I was some warm smooshy legwarmers, but Cascade 128 Superwash might be a better choice for that, I think I'd rather have the alpaca against my skin (unless I wear it with skirts, hmmmm). So now cabled mittens along the lines of Bella's Mittens are in my mind.

I'm also working on the BFL/Silk Shawl. It looks like vomit. Still. Those colors, yeah they are true. I think this has taught me a very valuable lesson in buying dyed roving, I very much prefer sequences longer than the fiber's staple length.

The spinning is uneven, some parts are thicker and lovely soft, others are wire-y. Overall it feels lovely to the touch though and it is knitting up quick. I'm having a hard time spinning fast enough for the knitting.

Because I'm knitting as I spin and I'm not 100% positive where the middle of the shawl will be my plan is this,

1 - at the end of this ball (about 20 feet) I will put the shawl on a stitch holder.

2 - I will cast on and knit the lace pattern for the opposite end of the shawl.

3 - at the top of the lace pattern, I will put it on a stitch holder and resume with the remaining yarn on the body.

4 - when I'm just about out of yarn, I will graft the two sides together.

Hopefully this will result in a couple of things with minimal thinking,

1 - identical lace panels on either end

2 - a nearly invisible graft that should get lost in the lace to body transition

3 - minimal yarn waste and maximum size.

Some color folks might be gasping, "But the color sequence! You will muck it all up." But the color on this thing is atrocious. And I still plan to over dye it a darker color so this is not a problem. I hope.

It's not the sequencing that bothered me it's the muddy-ing up. All the colors got blended together, there isn't any of the original tones in the singles or yarn. They are all blended and muted. I want larger pools or no color at all.

I am obsessed with symmetry and continuity in my knitting. To that note, I designed my own Bella pattern after a lot of trial and error. I'd be happy to send it to you if you want, I'd love a test knitter!